History of Ukraine
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Early history
The first identifiable groups to populate what is now Ukraine were Cimmerians, Scythians, Sarmatians, and Goths, among other nomadic peoples who arrived throughout the first millennium B.C. These people were well known to colonists and traders in the ancient world, including Greeks and Romans, who established trading outposts which eventually became city states. Slavic tribes occupied central and eastern Ukraine in the sixth century A.D. and played an important role in the establishment of Kiev. In the 9th century Kiev was conquered from the Khazars by the Varangian (Swedish Viking) Oleg. Situated on lucrative trade routes, Kiev quickly prospered as the center of the powerful Slavic/Scandinavian state of Kievan Rus. In the 11th century, Kievan Rus was, geographically, the largest state in Europe. A Christian missionary, Cyril, converted the Kievan nobility (mostly Varangians) and most of the population in 988. Conflict among the feudal lords led to decline in the 12th century. Kiev was razed by Mongol raiders in the 12th century. Subsequently, all principalities on Ukraine acknowledged the sovereignty of Mongols. The Mongol rule was very cruel and people often fled to other countries. Ukrainian settlements appeared in Poland and Hungary.
Middle Ages
During 14th century Poland and Lithuania fought wars against Mongol invaders, and eventually most of Ukraine was liberated from their rule and divided between Poland and Lithuania. Most of Ukraine bordered parts of Lithuania, and some say that the name comes from the border, although the name "Ukraine" was also used centuries earlier. Following the union between Poland and Lithuania Ukraine saw considerable development in education. Poles, German, Armenians and Jews immigrated to the country.
The Commonwealth
After forming the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth the Ukraine gentry voted for being for membership in the Polish part 1569. The following period saw a huge revitalization in colonisation efforts. Many new cities and villages were founded. New schools spread the ideas of the Renaissance; Ukraine culture flourished. Nevertheless, social tensions also grew. Peasants who fled efforts to force them into servitude came to be known as Cossacks and earned a reputation for their fierce martial spirit. The 1648 rebellion and the following wars, also known as The Deluge, undermined the foundations and stability of society.
In 1667, the eastern part of Ukraine was seized by Russia. In 1793, it was reunited as part of the Russian Empire.
Partitions
See also: Partitions of Poland
The 19th century found the region largely agricultural, with a few cities and centers of trade and learning. The region was under the control of the Austrians in the extreme west (see: Galicia) and of the Russians elsewhere. Ukrainian writers and intellectuals were inspired by the nationalistic spirit stirring other European peoples existing under other imperial governments and were determined to revive Ukrainian linguistic and cultural traditions and re-establish a Ukrainian nation-state. The Russians in particular imposed strict limits on attempts to elevate Ukrainian language and culture, even banning its use and study.
The 20th Century
When World War I and the Bolshevik revolution in Russia shattered the Hapsburg and Russian empires, Ukrainians declared independent statehood. Between 1917 and 1918, three separate Ukrainian republics declared independence, including Ukrainian Peoples Republic of Symon Petlura. However, by 1921, the western part of the traditional territory had been incorporated into Poland, and the larger, central and eastern part became part of the Soviet Union as the Ukrainian SSR.
The Ukrainian national idea persevered during the interwar years, and Soviet reaction was severe, particularly under Stalin, who imposed terror campaigns, which ravaged the intellectual class. He also created artificial famines as part of his forced collectivization policies, which killed millions of previously independent peasants and others throughout the country. Estimates of deaths from the 1932-33 famine alone range from 3 million to 7 million.
After Nazi German and Soviet troops invaded Poland in 1939, the western Ukrainian regions were incorporated into the Soviet Union. When Nazi Germany invaded the Soviet Union in 1941, many Ukrainians, particularly in the west, welcomed them, but this did not last. The Nazi's brutality was directed principally against Ukraine's Jews (of whom 1 million were killed) but also against many other Ukrainians. Kiev and other parts of the country were heavily damaged. Some Ukrainians began to resist Nazi Germany as well as the Soviet Union. Resistance against Soviet Government forces continued as late as the 1950s.
Independence
Little changed for Ukraine over the next few decades. During periods of relative liberalization--as under Nikita Khrushchev from 1955 to 1964--Ukrainian communists pursued national objectives. In the years of perestroika, under U.S.S.R. President Mikhail Gorbachev, national goals were again advanced by Ukrainian officials. Ukraine became an independent state on August 24, 1991, following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, and was a founding member of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). On December 1, 1991 Ukrainian voters overwhelmingly approved a referendum formalizing independence from the Soviet Union.
Further Reading
- Paul Robert Magocsi, cartographer, Geoffrey J. Matthews, Ukraine: A Historical Atlas (University of Toronto Ukrainian Studies, No 1), University of Toronto Press, January, 1986, hardcover, ISBN 0802034284, Selected maps online
- Paul Robert Magocsi, A History of Ukraine, University of Washington Press, December, 1996, trade paperback, 784 pages, ISBN 0295975806
See also
- History of Russia
- History of Poland
- History of Lithuania
- History of Belarus
- History of the Soviet Union: Part I, Part II
References
- Adapted from the Wikipedia article, "History_of_Ukraine" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Ukraine, used under the GNU Free Documentation License
